Exploration

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Everyone to Parliament!

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The Present-Day Place D'Youville

3

Place Royale

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Place d’Armes

5

Notre-Dame Street

6

Champ-de-Mars

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Montréal, a Fortified Town

Early-19th-century hand-drawn map showing the fortifications of the city of Montréal. The fortifications encircle the entire old city centre.

Louis Charland, “Plan des Fortifications de la Ville de Montréal […], le 25 janvier 1803” (detail), Library and Archives Canada, 4137835.

The Champ-de-Mars remains inseparable from Montréal’s military history and from the defensive system inherited from the French Regime. The layout of the fortifications largely matches the present-day perimeter of Old Montréal. On this map, the Champ-de-Mars is identified as number III.

Then-and-Now

The interactive feature lets you compare how a place’s architecture and urban landscape have evolved over time. By dragging a vertical bar at the centre of the image—moving your mouse from left to right, and back again—you can reveal the changes between 1848 and 2025. 1848 image: When the bar is positioned all the way to the left, you see the 3D reconstruction of 1848. It shows a two-storey neo-Palladian stone building with a sloped roof. In front is a small square with trees and wrought-iron fencing. Nearby are several stone buildings and a cobblestone street.The interactive feature lets you compare how a place’s architecture and urban landscape have evolved over time. By dragging a vertical bar at the centre of the image—moving your mouse from left to right, and back again—you can reveal the changes between 1848 and 2025. 2025 image: When the bar is positioned all the way to the right, you see the contemporary photograph from 2025. It shows an urban square with a paved platform surrounded by steps. On either side, several stone buildings are arranged, and a row of trees lines the site.

1848 image: Guy Lessard, Pointe-à-Callière. / 2025 image: Normand Rajotte, Pointe-à-Callière, 2022.019.017.

Look at the Champ-de-Mars today. The remains of the fortifications have been excavated by archaeologists and are now incorporated into the design of this urban park.

Regiments on Display!

A 19th-century black-and-white illustration. In the foreground, a uniformed soldier stands beside a column. In the background, a monumental column is surrounded by wrought-iron fencing, with passersby in front. Buildings rise on either side.

Unknown artist, "View from the Main Guardroom looking towards Nelson’s Monument, Montreal, showing member of 93rd Regiment", 1845, Library and Archives Canada, C-110974.

In this artist’s view of 1845, drawn from the guardhouse on Notre-Dame Street, facing the Nelson Column, a soldier is shown standing sentry. In that year, two British regiments were stationed in Montréal: the 52nd Regiment of Light Infantry and the 93rd Sutherland Highland Regiment. The distinctive uniform makes it possible to identify the soldier here as one of the 93rd Highlanders, recognizable by his Scottish kilt.